PCDOE Optimizing service performance Practice Question
A company runs a stateful workload on Compute Engine VMs with persistent disks. They observe that disk I/O latency spikes periodically. The workload is sensitive to latency. What should they do to improve performance?
⚠ Common exam trap
Google Cloud often tests the misconception that increasing disk size or using local SSDs is the universal fix for latency, but the trap here is failing to recognize that the workload is stateful and requires persistent storage, making local SSDs inappropriate despite their performance.
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Use SSD persistent disks instead of standard persistent disks.
SSD persistent disks provide consistent, low-latency I/O performance compared to standard persistent disks, which use spinning media and can exhibit periodic latency spikes under sustained load. For latency-sensitive stateful workloads, SSD persistent disks offer predictable IOPS and throughput, directly addressing the periodic spikes observed.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Increase the size of the persistent disk.
Why it's wrong here
Size does not directly affect latency.
- ✗
Migrate to local SSDs for better performance.
Why it's wrong here
Local SSDs are ephemeral and not suitable for stateful workloads.
- ✓
Use SSD persistent disks instead of standard persistent disks.
Why this is correct
SSD offers lower latency and higher IOPS.
- ✗
Configure a snapshot schedule to offload I/O.
Why it's wrong here
Snapshots do not improve I/O performance.
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Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This PCDOE practice question is part of Courseiva's free Google Cloud certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the PCDOE exam.